Spring in Barcelona Means It’s Calçot Season

Barcelona

Each year, the calçot, a sweet onion variety similar in appearance to the leek, is harvested all over Catalunya just before spring and served by the dozens in restaurants and on dining room tables across the region. Translated, the tradition known locally as la calçotada would be something like, “the eating of the spring onion.” That doesn’t quite capture it, though.

To get a real feel, you can head just outside of Barcelona to a traditional 13th-century farmhouse-turned-restaurant, Can Carbonell, where the charcoal grills are now kindling until the end of April. “We have a cook who gets here early every Saturday morning and spends the whole day just preparing calçots,” said Laura Sabaté, the restaurant’s manager.

At Can Carbonell and a score of other restaurants, the calçotada goes basically the same way, starting with a grill or wood-burning oven and ending with a spectacle of a feast. The charred-black calçots are usually served on a slab of slate or rolled inside newsprint, which, according to Ms. Sabaté, preserves their temperature and soft texture.

Once on the table, eating becomes a free-for-all. Participants wear bibs as they peel off the burned exterior, dunk the uncovered white bottom into a typical romesco sauce (a mixture of ground almonds, hazelnuts, tomatoes and olive oil), and dangle it above the mouth for that perfect and only bite.

While diners can often eat about 15 in one sitting, the full calçotada lunch special includes traditional pa amb tomàquet (similar to bruschetta), grilled lamb or sausage with potatoes, wine or cava and finally, for dessert, crema catalana. Locals will usually ask for an espresso or a shot of liquor to aid in digestion, but the focus stays on the food.

“We had a university group last weekend,” Ms. Sabaté said. “Sixty students and they asked for an open bar of calçots.”

Restaurants in and around Barcelona with a calçotada menu: Can Carbonell (34.90 euros, or $45, plus tax); Bodega Monumental (24.50 euros ); Can Martí (18 euros).